[Brenda Yamin]  The Construction Management Engineering program is a relatively new program with lots of prospects for the future.  Very few people actually know what is involved with the program.  When you use the word construction, we automatically think of hammer and nails, which is a big part of the industry.  But as far as the management part, that is a whole new industry.

[Gregory Gillis ] Our program takes two years and we focus on Construction Management Engineering technology.  Some of the four year programs will do two years of trades and they follow up with two years of management.  We get right into the management, we give them a management background, we are rather unique in that area.  

[Shawn Hill]  We are not a curriculum that teaches the labor aspect of the program, but what we do is that we integrate labor with the management process.  So we do have several different labs that you will get the hands-on experience in order to follow through the management process. 
   
[Gregory Gillis]  We start at the basics; we give them blueprint reading, drafting, estimating, scheduling, they have to learn about the contracts and specs, safety aspects.  

[Brenda Yamin]  So we touch on a little bit of everything.  They are not going to become experts on any one topic, but when they are out in the field, they will have been exposed to framing and the lab situations, time cards, contracts.

[Shawn Hill]  The skill sets required in order to succeed in this program would have a math background.  Usually you do not need to go as high as calculus, but you do need to have math dealing with algebra and trigonometry, have basic knowledge of computers.  

[Gregory Gillis]  So the beam goes from here to here.  This column sits on the wall and the beam continues over to here.

[Shawn Hill] One of our biggest strengths of the Construction Management Engineering program would be that every faculty member here has real life experience in the field, not only within the teaching environment, but also practical experience working for either engineering companies and construction companies.  
  
[Brenda Yamin]  I was a subcontractor, so I have that background.  Shawn, who teaches in our department, is a project manager, so he brings that expertise.  Greg Gillis, who is in structural engineering part of it, brings in the engineering aspect.  So everyone that teaches in the department brings in a whole different viewpoint or a whole different array of talents that really rounds out the department.

[Shawn Hill]  In a regular house, if they did that, they brought the seam right up the edge of a window or door, it's going to crack right here.    

[Brenda Yamin]  The process of Construction Management is a relatively new process that is being developed every day with every project and the prospects for our students just seem to be growing and growing as the construction management industry develops.

[Shawn Hill]  The majority of the jobs that students will get after graduation in the Construction Management Engineering curriculum would be starting out either as an estimator, an inspector or assistant project manager. 

[Brenda Yamin]  We have a lot of students that come back to school in order to own their own business.  That is what I did many, many years ago.  I came back to ECC after having a four year degree, just to get the skills I needed to run a company.  So a lot of our students go out and run their own company.

[Student]  Right to the edge of the eight foot sheet right here ...

[Brenda Yamin] I hope that the student leaves this program with love of the industry, motivation to do something about it and the ambition to go out there and make a difference.